Fire victim dies

Dorothy Metcalfe, 84, who was severely burned in a mobile home fire last Friday in Marion, has died at Vanderbilt Hospital.

Metcalfe's great-grandson, Eddie Knight, had pulled her out of the home along with help from Marion policeman George Foster, but she had sustained burns over 30 percent of her body, according to emergency personnel.

Metcalfe is the fifth person to die in a home fire in Marion in the last 30 years.

Investigators believe it was an electical issue that caused the fire.

2 Miners Missing in Webster County

Two miners are missing after an underground rock fall at the Dotiki Mine in Webster County.

A Crittenden County miner, who works at Dotiki, but did not want to be identified, said the men are not from Crittenden County. He knows who they are, but did not want to disclose any other information while the rescue operation is underway. He said mine rescue experts are at the scene this morning.

Tim Miller, an international representative of the United Mine Workers Union, told the Associated Press that the accident occurred early Thursday at the mine near Providence. Miller described it as a large underground coal mine.

Miller said he was called around 6 a.m., by a woman who had received a call from the mine, operated by Alliance Coal Company. The woman said she was told her husband and her son, who were working in the mine, were safe, but that two other miners were missing.

Miller described a rock fall as a ceiling collapse, usually in an isolated area. Other miners in the unit were able to safely escape the fall, according to a miner who works there.

Miller said the Dotiki Mine is a large operation that employs more than 300 miners. Several Crittenden miners are among those who work there, some on the same unit where the accident occurred.

The incident must happened prior to 3 a.m., because the Crittenden County miner was called about that time and notified that his shift was cancelled due to the fall.

Click here to read more about the Dotiki Mine.

Highway work this week in Crittenden

A contractor for the Kentucky Transportation Cabinet is planning asphalt paving along sections of KY 297 and KY 838 in Crittenden County this week, weather permitting.

Milling work has been completed along KY 297/Tolu-Sheridan Road. Plans call for paving to proceed when weather allows. This paving project runs from Tom Miner Road near Deer Creek Church northward to KY 135/Tolu-Carrsville Road, a distance of 5.83 miles.

Paving work along KY 838 runs from Tom Johnson Road eastward to KY 723, a distance of 1.24 miles.

Motorists who regularly travel these work zones should use appropriate caution where equipment, flaggers, and construction personnel will be along the roadway in close proximity to traffic flow. Some delays are possible during the movement and positioning of paving equipment as crews go about their work.

Area Deaths

Terry “Moose” Henry, 69, former Crittenden Auto Parts employee died April 23 at Lourdes Hospital.
Visitation is Monday night at Boyd Funeral Home in Salem.

Taina Jinene Hamilton, 48, of Marion died Thursday, April 22, 2010 at her residence. She was an employee of Crittenden Health Systems. The funeral is Monday at Myers Funeral Home in Marion.

Gladys Easley Delnagro, 89, of Princeton, formerly of Marion, died Thursday, April 22, 2010 at her home. The funeral is Tuesday at Gilbert Funeral Home in Marion.

Cave In Rock Ferry closed for wind

UPDATE: Ferry is back open and running on normal schedule, from 6 a.m., to 10 p.m., daily.

The Cave In Rock Ferry is closed by high winds. The ferry had to halt operation just before 10 a.m., due to windy conditions on the Ohio River. It will resume operation when the winds lay.

Press Online hacked

The Crittenden Press Online has been hacked by cyber pirates and will
not be available for a period of time. Our server provider is working
on the issue.

Thank you for your patience.

Elderly lady injured in fire

Update: An elderly Marion woman, Dorothy Metcalfe, was severely burned in a mobile home fire early Friday morning and was flown by helicopter to a regional hospital.

According to reports, the woman and her grandson were at home on First Street when it caught fire during the middle of the night. Investigators are still trying to determine the cause.

The grandson, Eddie Knight and a Marion police officer, George Foster, pulled the woman to safety, but she had suffered serious burns.

The fire started at about 1:25 a.m., and Marion Fire Department was called to the scene.

Backroads Guide
Today and Saturday
Marion Welcome Center is the first stop for Amish maps and other information. The center at Marion City Hall is open from 8:30 a.m., until 4:30 p.m., Friday and Saturday.

• Welcome Center Quilt Show features antique and collector quilts.
• Marion Woman’s Club Quilt Show & Bake Sale is on Friday only at the clubhouse on East Carlisle Street.
• aBackroads Quilt Show is on Saturday only at Marion City Hall with quilts in the garden.
• Amish Market & Craft Bazaar is on Friday and Saturday in front of Welcome Center in Marion Commons.
• Native American Quilt Show is from 9 a.m., until 4 p.m., Friday and Saturday at the Native American Center at 318 Sturgis Road next to Pamida.
• Self-guided Tours of the Amish community, follow the buggy signs.
• Other attractions: Clement Mineral Museum, Crittenden County HIstorical Museum, Farmers’ Market.
• Food concessions in town will benefit Relay for Life.
• For more information, call 965-5015

Ky 91 work Monday

Kentucky Transportation Cabinet plans to start asphalt paving along KY 91 in Caldwell County between Princeton and Fredonia on Monday, April 26.

Milling and paving work will be along KY 91 from KY 139 to near the entrance to Fredonia Valley Quarry. The paving crew is expected to be working along this section during daylight hours whenever weather allows for about a week.

 
Motorists who regularly travel KY 91 should be alert for equipment, flaggers and paving personnel along the roadway.

Chamber candidate forum draws 53

Fifty-three people attended the Crittenden County Chamber of Commerce's candidate forum Thursday. The luncheon was sponsored by Austin Engineering of Paducah, a member of the local Chamber and an engineering contractor on various city projects.

Republican candidates in the only contested primary race for judge-executive were panelists. The forum was moderated by Lee Conrad of Hopkinsville. All three candidates are running for judge-executive for the first time. Current Judge Fred Brown is not seeking re-election.

The Press conducted a straw poll and survey. Thirty-one of those attending responded to the voluntary poll, which indicated that Perry Newcom was the favorite by a considerable margin. However, Greg West and Mike McConnell swayed a few potential voters during the one-hour debate, according to the survey. Complete results of the straw poll and survey will be published in next week's edition of The Crittenden Press. Below is a sampling of the survey:

Exit Polling Results

Attendees who listened to the debate said afterward that they would tend to favor:

Perry Newcom 15.5 times

Greg West 7.0 times

Mike McConnell 4.5 times

US 641 blocked in Lyon County

UPDATE: ROAD IS NOW CLEAR

An auto accident is blocking both lanes of U.S. 641 near the Lyon-Caldwell County Line. All lanes are blocked at this time. Early reports indicate a gravel truck has overturned or spilled a load of gravel near the entrance to Fredonia Valley Quarry.

Highway crews have been dispatched to assist with clearing the roadway.

Estimated closure duration 2 hrs.

Fatal accident near Salem

UPDATE: A man mowing a church cemetery in rural Crittenden County was killed this morning when his mower turned over. The victim was Ronnie D. Belt, 49, of Fredonia.

The accident happened at Pleasant Grove General Baptist Church north of Salem.

Four injured in auto accident

Threee Crittenden County teens and another young woman were injured in an automobile accident Friday night in Union County.

Layten Maxfield, 18; Olivia Adams, 18; Rachel Cook, 18; and Melissa Kirk, 21, were all injured, Maxfield the most severely. She was flown to Vanderbilt Hospital with internal injuries and a broken pelvis.

The single-vehicle accident happened about 9 p.m., between Sullivan and Sturgis on U.S. 60. Cook was driving the vehicle and Kirk was in the front passenger seat, both buckled. Adams and Maxfield were in the back seat and Maxfield was not buckled. She was ejected from the vehicle as it rolled over three times after hydroplaning in a curve.

Another Crittenden County resident, Rose Dempsey, came upon the accident and stayed with the young women until the Union County Ambulance arrived. All were taken to the Union County Hospital. Maxfield and Kirk were later transferred to other hospitals.

No more details are available at this time.

Passion Play starts Friday night

Marion Baptist Church will be hosting this weekend its annual post-Easter play, featuring church members performing the Passion of Christ.

The event is free and open to the public. Doors open at 6 p.m., Friday and Sunday evening with the performance beginning at 7 p.m., both nights.

For more information, go online to http://www.marionbaptistchurch.com.

Pictured is Ginger Boone (soloist) as the healed woman, Kenneth "Spud" Beckner as Jesus and Mike Byford as a centurion.

Here is a partial list of the cast

(See next week's Press for a full list of the cast and crew)
Jesus Kenneth "Spud" Beckner
John the Disciple Mike Jones
Peter Jason Dunbar
Healed Woman Ginger Boone
Mary, Mother of Jesus Casey Winstead
Judas Jacob Hunt
Centurions Chad Morris & Mike Byford

Lawmakers adjourn without budget

FRANKFORT, Ky. (AP) — Kentucky lawmakers went home without a new state budget Thursday, failing to break a contentious deadlock and guaranteeing a follow-up special session to try again on a spending plan to keep all of state government open this summer.

The prolonged budget impasse proved insurmountable as first the Senate and then the House adjourned their 2010 sessions that opened in January. The final setback came when the Senate spurned a last-minute budget offer from the top House Democrat.

Gov. Steve Beshear later expressed disgust with the lawmakers' inability to reach a budget deal, and said he intended to call a special session in May to get the job done.

A special session, coming in an election year, would cost taxpayers about $64,000 a day.

Beshear gave lawmakers a tongue-lashing, saying they "decided to put their egos and their personal priorities above the needs of Kentucky's families."

Friday last day to mail in Census form

Households in Kentucky that have received a 2010 Census questionnaire have until Friday, April 16 to complete and mail it back in the provided, postage-paid envelope. If the Friday deadline is missed, you likely will be visited by a door-to-door census taker in a nonresponse follow-up operation that begins May 1 and continues into July.

As of Thursday, 70 percent of households in Kentucky had mailed back their census form, matching the state’s mail participation rate in Census 2000. Kentucky joins three other states in the nation that have met or exceeded its Census 2000 mail participation rate: North Carolina South Carolina and Tennessee, all in the Charlotte census region. Nationally, 67 percent of households have returned their questionnaires as of Thursday.

“Kudos to Kentucky so far, but the push is still on,” said William W. Hatcher, regional director for the U.S. Census Bureau. “The easiest, most efficient and least costly way to ensure you are counted is to mail back your census questionnaire immediately.”

Hatcher noted some households might not have received a census form for a variety of reasons. For instance, people might live in an area where the forms weren’t deliverable, the address might be incomplete, the household might be part of a special census operation, or the residence might be a new construction or part of a new housing development.

“If you have not yet received the questionnaire, sit tight. A census taker will visit you sometime after April 30 to get the census information,” Hatcher said. ” Every phase of the census has the potential for problems, but we have subsequent operations designed to correct each problem and get the best count possible.”

Hatcher said the Census Bureau has a safety net to ensure everyone is included in the census.
You can get a Be Counted census form by visiting a Be Counted or Questionnaire Assistance Center. To find a Be Counted site near you, go to 2010census.gov and click “Need Help with Your Form?” For multi-language help in filling out your form, call toll-free 1-866-872-6868.

“Bottom line, we are constitutionally mandated to count everyone, once, in the right place and that’s what we plan to do,” Hatcher said. “It’s important for Kentucky and its communities.”

Decennial census results are used to determine the number of seats each state gets in the U.S. House of Representatives, the shape of legislative and local government districts, and how $400 billion in federal funds is distributed annually to communities across America.

Lawmakers may not pass a budget

As of late Wednesday, it did not appear that Kentucky lawmakers were going to find common ground on a budget.

The deadlock could mean a special session later this year, at a large expense to taxpayers.

One House leader wants to extend the current spending plan until perhaps next April. Read More - Click Here.

Belt's Auction This Weekend

Click Image to Enlarge

Cyclist riding through Thursday

Be on the lookout Thursday for 7=67-year-old bicyclist Joe Bowen who will be coming through Crittenden County on his “Miles for Mongiardo” bike tour across the state.

Bowen, Kentucky’s first Unbridled Spirit award winner, is riding 1,400-miles across the state in support of Dr. Daniel Mongiardo’s campaign for the U.S. Senate.

Bowen, a grandfather of 13, has previously completed two bicycle rides across the United States and written a book called Real Winners Don’t Quit.

Area obituary: Nunn

Eddie Bruce Nunn, age 83 of Henderson diedSaturday, April 10 at Redbanks Nursing Home. The funeral is Monday at Myers Funeral Home in Marion.

Spring Break ends Sunday

Students in Crittenden County will go back to class on Monday, April 12. They have been on spring break for more than a week.

The 12th was originally scheduled as a day off, too, but snow makeup days have forced students to be back in their seats on Monday.

Rescue squad at wreck

Update 2: Crittenden County Rescue Squad, Tolu Volunteer Fire Department and Kentucky State Police have been dispatched to an single-vehicle accident on Ky. 91 North this morning. One person was believed trapped in a vehicle, which crashed near the former Pilot House grocery store. The accident occurred shortly after 6 a.m.

The victim has been identified as Mason Perkins, approximately 20 years old. He was flown to an Evansville hospital with possible leg and back injuries. He was in series condition Friday afternoon.

US 60 Highway is Re-Open

U.S. 60 – closed for most of today for repairs near Orb Taylor Road, has re-opened to traffic almost two hours ahead of schedule and just in time for the evening commute home.

The road was closed between Crittenden Springs Road and Ky. 297 since early this morning.

Marion FD featured on WPSD tonight

Marion's plans to build a new fire department will be featured on WPSD Local 6 tonight.

The fire department will be built on the corner of Main and Bellville streets. This is a preliminary sketch of what it might look like. Construction could start late this year, but site work is expected to begin this summer.

It's not certain which newscast will feature the fire station. City Administrator Mark Bryant was interviewed in Marion today for the segment.

US 60 Highway Work Today

The highway work on U.S. 60 will be done today despite the threat of rain. The U.S. 60 West will be closed for about 12 hours day between Crittenden Springs Road and the bottom of Moore Hill at Ky. 297. The work should be completed today and the road should be reopened Friday.

Call for Spotlight

The Crittenden Press printed edition is always seeking news tips and short features for its Spotlight on the Community section.

Do you have a college student who joined a fraternity or sorority, a friend who received a special award or recognition, an employee who recently completed special training or a parent who is retiring? These are just a few examples. We're looking for a variety of Spotlight features. If you think it's important to you, it's probably important to our readers.

If so, we want to know. Provide us with some basic information such as who, what, when, where and why. And please include a contact email address or phone number.

CLICK HERE TO SEND US A NEWS OR SPOTLIGHT SUGGESTION

U.S. 60 Closed Thursday only for repairs

UPDATE: The Kentucky Transportation Cabinet is workong on U.S. 60 West in Crittenden County this week to replace two cross drains. The highway will be closed to through traffic between Crittenden Springs Road (Ky. 1668) and the Sheridan Road (Ky. 297) on Thursday, April 8 only. The work is being done near the intersection with Orb Taylor Road. Motorists will detour across Ky. 1668, Glendale Church Road and to Ky. 297. Large trucks should detour on appropriate state highways.

Area Death: McKinney

Ms. Jerry McKinney 61, of Marion died Sunday, April 4, 2010 at her home. Visitation is Tuesday and the funeral is Wednesday at Gilbert Funeral Home.

Aircraft accident

A MULTI-ENGINE FIXED WING AIRCRAFT coming in for a landing apparently went off of the runway at Princeton Airport and went through a fence.  One pilot was on board and was uninjured.  There was no fire.  Some fuel has leaked from the tanks.

No other information is available at this time.